UPDATE: According to the Associated Press, Hicks' wife, Karen, claims a parking spot was the root of the dispute between Barakat and his family:
I can say that it is my absolute belief that this incident had nothing up do with religion or the victims' faith, but in fact was related to long-standing parking disputes my husband had with various neighbors regardless of their race, religion or creed.
The man accused of killing three Muslim students near the University of North Carolina's campus yesterday has been charged, authorities say.
According to CNN, Deah Shaddy Barakat, 23; his wife, 21-year-old Yusor Mohammad; and her 19-year-old sister, Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha, were found dead at a Chapel Hill, N.C. apartment. All reportedly suffered gunshot wounds to the head. CNN reports that Craig Stephen Hicks, 46, turned himself in to police last night.
CNN adds that Barakat was in his second year at UNC's School of Dentistry, while his wife and her sister were students at North Carolina State University.
Although police have not determined a motive, it's suspected that the victims' religion was a motivating factor. Although it hasn't been confirmed, a Facebook post apparently made by Hicks seems to indicate as much:
In one post widely shared online, Hicks, who claimed he is an atheist, allegedly wrote: When it comes to insults, your religion started this, not me. If your religion kept its big mouth shut, so would I.
Hicks faces three counts of first-degree murder.
[via CNN]
